Adrien Broner Defeats Gavin Rees via 5th-Round TKO to Keep WBC Lightweight Title

Adrien Broner (26-0) successfully defended his WBC lightweight title after defeating Gavin Rees (37-2-1) by way of a TKO in the fifth round in Atlantic City on Saturday night.

Rees came out as the aggressor in the opening rounds and was able to keep Broner relatively quiet early on. Granted, Rees didn't land any real impact punches other than a nasty hook to Broner's head, but he was the busier fighter, and that led to an undeniable victory in each of the first two rounds.

It wasn't until the third round that Broner's showmanship took a backseat to some serious fighting. The Problem landed a devastating combo on Rees that pushed the fighter from Wales against the ropes, but Rees was able to escape.

That was the start of Rees' troubles.

In the fourth, Broner dropped Rees to the canvas with a nasty right uppercut in what was only the second knockdown of the 32-year-old's career. However, that didn't seem to phase Rees all that much, as he continued to give Broner a challenging contest.

The fifth round led to more damage on Rees, and after taking some serious combinations, Rees was once again dropped to his knee after a crushing body blow. Shortly thereafter, Broner unleashed another combo that forced Rees' corner to throw in the towel.

With the win, Broner adds yet another impressive showing to his resume and remains undefeated as the WBC lightweight titleholder.

On the flip side, Rees' first fight in the states was just about as much of a success as he could've hoped. He landed more punches than the champion and made this a fight early on, but in the end the more talented fighter won.